Chicken Pox and Mangoes
by princessozmaofoz
Summary: When the time comes for Inspector Lewis to make an important decision, he seeks his boss's assistance. Lewis/ Innocent friendship fluff w/ implied Lewis/Hobson. COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: So I've noticed that I have developed the bad habit of torturing Innocent in my stories. This is a real pity, as not only is Jean my favorite character, but she suffers enough on the show without my having to add sexual harassment and/ or various husband issues to her already problematic life. So, in order to make up for my mistreatment of her, I've decided to write a nice fluff piece in which nothing terribly horrible happens. I think this will be a three-shot. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own __Lewis._

Chapter One

" So what brings you here ma'am?" Detective Inspector Robbie Lewis asked DCS Innocent as she entered his office.

" I just wanted to check on your progress."

" Well, prepare to be disappointed," said Sgt. Hathaway from his desk. " We have absolutely no suspects and precious little physical evidence. We've yet to even properly identify the victim!"

" Well, I'm sure you'll prevail in the end; you always do."

Hathaway wasn't whether he was more flattered or more confused. The chief superintendent wasn't in the habit of dolling out such accolades and when James considered the fact that Innocent had lectured Lewis and himself about proper procedure twice in the past week alone, his bewilderment increased. For a very long moment, the sergeant studied his female superior, hoping that he'd be able to determine whether or not she was up to something.

She noticed that he was staring at her and gave him a very odd look.

" Err… those are nice earrings, ma'am," he said finally, in an attempt to save face.

She absently reached up to touch one. " Thank you, James. They were a present from my husband."

" He has excellent taste," Hathaway responded. He hoped that the compliment might persuade Innocent to elaborate. James was extremely curious on the subject of Mr. Innocent, largely because the chief superintendent so rarely mentioned her husband.

" No, err… actually he gave me the money, and I selected them. Mr. Innocent is positively hopeless when it comes to jewelry; he even made me pick out my own engagement ring."

" Ah," Hathaway said awkwardly.

" Well, I think you have very good taste, ma'am," Lewis remarked as Hathaway muttered " Kiss-up" under his breath.

Innocent ignored Hathaway's comment and continued to focus her attention on Lewis." Thank you."

" Anytime. Anything else, ma'am?"

" Yes, there is one thing," Innocent shut the door behind her and lowered her voice significantly. " I…I wanted to make sure that we're still on for tonight, Robbie."

Lewis lowered his voice as well." We are, ma'am. I'm looking forward to it."

" Me too. I'll see you after work, then." Without another word, the chief superintendent opened the door and walked thorough it. Once she had left, Hathaway nudged his partner.

" What was that about?"

" Never you mind, sergeant. It's none of your business."

" I'm sorry, sir, but I'm afraid it is my business," Hathaway replied, his voice taking on a slightly menacing tone. " I don't care how attractive you find Jean; I'm not about to stand by and let you break Hobson's heart."

" James, you're interpreting this all wrong. Innocent is just a friend, and I have absolutely no intention of breaking Laura's heart."

The sergeant was still skeptical. "Then why were you and the chief super whispering earlier?"

" Well, we were whispering, because we don't want the whole station talking. And, _no_, James, it isn't the sort of gossip that you're thinking about in that sick little mind of yours."

" My mind is neither little nor sick!" Hathaway protested vehemently.

" So, you're not denying that you _were_ thinking about it just now?"

The sergeant merely rolled his eyes. " Whatever. Anyway, what exactly were you and Innocent talking about?"

" Well, we're…er…we're going shopping later."

Hathaway fought back a laugh. " Shopping?"

" Yeah, you know—when you go look over products and decide whether or not you want to buy them?"

" I'm well aware of what shopping is, sir; I'm just curious as to why you and the chief super are doing it together." A thought suddenly occurred to him. " Sir, our guv hasn't been giving you a hard time about your clothing—has she?"

" Why would she?" Lewis's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Are you trying to tell me something, sergeant?"

" No, of course not._" _Realizing that Lewis was not at all convinced by his white lie, Hathaway decided to tell the truth_. " _It's just…_some_ people might say that you dress a bit unprofessionally at times."

" Some people…meaning _you_?" Lewis asked, scowling slightly.

" Well, yeah. Me and the chief super."

" So the two of you have had cozy little chats about the way I dress?"

" Little chats, yes, but I'd hardly call them cozy. After all, I don't want _Mister _Innocent to get the wrong idea. Speaking of which—does _he_ know that you're taking his wife shopping?"

Lewis shrugged." I dunno; you'd have to ask the chief super. But whether he knows or not, it's not really anything he needs to worry about. My relationship with Innocent is strictly palontic."

" Palontic?"

" You know, when you're pretty good mates with someone of the opposite gender, but you're not at all interested in snogging them."

" Don't you mean ' platonic'?" Hathaway asked, still sniggering slightly at his friend's neologism.

" Yeah, that's it. Innocent and I are platonic friends who are going shopping together; that's it."

_' Then, why do you seem so tense, Robbie?' _Hathaway thought to himself. Then he spoke aloud.

" If that's really all it is, then why are the two of you acting like there's some big secret?"

Lewis gave his sergeant an admiring glance." You really don't give up—do you?"

" Well, I was trained by the best, sir," James replied, and Robbie beamed. "Anyway," Hathaway continued a moment later, " what exactly is it that you're not telling me?"

" Well, the real secret isn't that the chief super and I are _going_ shopping; it's what we're shopping _for_."

" Which is…"

" An engagement ring," Lewis said finally. "I'm going to ask Hobson to marry me, and I want Innocent to help me pick out the perfect ring."

Hathaway's jaw dropped in astonishment. This certainly wasn't been the answer that he had been expecting! " That's wonderful news, sir. What on earth took you so long?"

" So, you don't think I'm crazy for doing it? I mean…what if Laura says "no?'"

The sergeant walked over and put a comforting hand on his inspector's shoulder. " Well, if she says 'no,' I'm afraid that you'll just have to move past it. But she's going to say ' yes,' sir; I'm sure of it."

Lewis looked immensely relieved; it was clear that this had been worrying him a great deal." You really think so?"

" I know so; she's been in love with you for years." Lewis smiled again, and then Hathaway continued a moment later. " Have you thought about where you're going to propose yet? "

" Well, we're going to London in a few weeks to see a production of _The Faerie Queene,_ and I thought that would be an appropriate setting, seeing as it was _supposed_ to be our first date. And before you ask, I have full confidence that Hobson and I will actually manage to see the opera this time around; Innocent's already agreed to give me a day-and-a-half off so that I can do the asking."

" I can see it now. The tenor will finish his aria and during the thunderous applause, you'll kneel down and say ' Doctor, my heart bleeds for you. I'm sure that it would heal admirably if you did me the honour of becoming my wife.'" Hathaway said melodramatically, falling to one knee and placing his hands over his heart.

Lewis pushed him slightly, and the sergeant fell on his rear end. "Can you imagine how humiliating that would be for her?"

" I don't think it's humiliating; I think it's very romantic," Hathaway teased as he rose to his feet again.

" Regardless of what you think, I'm gonna do the proposing _after_ the performance, and I'm not say anything _that _ridiculous.'"

Hathaway grinned." I still think I prefer my way."

" Well, when _you_ ask a woman to marry you, sergeant, you're free to do just that. I'll laugh when she turns you down, of course, but you can still take satisfaction in the fact that you did it _your_ way. "

" That I will, inspector. That I will."


	2. Chapter 2

_So I decided to make this a two-shot instead of a three-shot. That's just the way it ended up working out so here is the second and final chapter._

_Warning: Random silliness, possible OOC-ness, and total fluffiness is about to occur. Read at your own risk!_

Chapter Two

" So why exactly, do you want my help, Robbie?" Detective Chief Superintendent Jean Innocent asked as she carefully navigated her car into a parking spot.

Inspector Lewis waited for her to move the car into " park" mode before responding. " Well, this is a very big step for Laura and meself, and I just…just don't want to do anything that might mess this up."

Innocent turned off the car and pulled her keys out of the ignition. " I don't believe you're in any danger of doing that; Laura's crazy about you, you know."

" She's certainly led me to believe so." He paused and then continued. " Anyway, thanks for agreeing to come with me, ma'am."

" You're welcome. Oh and Robbie, you _can_ call me ' Jean' right now, seeing as we're off-duty. In fact, I think I'd prefer it; 'ma'am' makes me feel so bloody _old."_

" Yes, ma…I mean…yes, _Jean_. Anyway, thanks for coming; I could really use a feminine opinion on this, especially seeing as this is the first time I've bought a diamond."

She looked at him confusedly. " Didn't you buy one for Val?"

" No, actually my gran knew that I was thinking about proposing, and she gave me her ring to give to Val."

He glanced over and saw that Innocent was staring at him, the same "oh-how-adorable" expression on her face that people frequently wore after meeting Lewis's eighteen-month-old granddaughter. This made Lewis feel extremely uncomfortable, so he quickly changed the subject.

"Are you ready to go in the store now, ma'am…er… Jean?"

" No, there are a few things we need to talk about first."

" Such as…"

She took a notepad and a pen out of her purse." What's Laura's ring size?"

Lewis's eyes widened. " There are _sizes?_"

" I take it you don't know then," she sighed, " and for you to call and ask her right now _would _look rather suspicious."

" So, we're just going to have to give up?" Lewis said disappointedly.

" I said that it would be suspicious for _you_ to call her; I didn't say anything about myself." Innocent reached into her handbag and withdrew her mobile. She dialed Hobson's number and then placed the phone up to her ear.

" Hello, Laura. It's Jean. I'm calling, because a woman's ring was turned in to the station's lost-and-found this afternoon. It's a size… L. Oh, I…I see." Innocent quickly scribbled something down on the pad of paper, tore the front page off and handed it to Lewis. "Well, then, I guess it's not yours after all…No, don't worry about asking around; I'll be sure to find out who it belongs to… I'm sorry, Laura, but I've got to go now; I…er…Mr. Innocent's car just pulled in, and we…we have a …dinner reservation. Goodbye." She hung out the phone, and then turned to Lewis.

" Well done, ma'am."

" Thank you, Robbie. I think we can go in now if you're ready."

The two exited the chief superintendent's car and walked over to the jewelry shop. A bell rang as they entered, and an attractive redhead who appeared to be in her late thirties went to greet them. Her nametag read " Pearl."

" How may I help you?" she asked.

'_Her name is Pearl, and she works in a jewelry store. That's more than a little ironic?' _Innocent thought to herself.

" We're here to look at engagement rings."

Pearl smiled, showing off teeth that were as dazzling as her name suggested. "Oh, how exciting! I hope the two of you will be very happy."

" We're not…" Innocent began just as Lewis said, " Thank you; I'm sure we will be."

" We have a fine selection of rings in all price ranges," the jeweler said, gesturing to the many glass cases behind her. " Let me know if there's anything you want to try on."

Suddenly, the phone rang. " Hold on a second," Pearl said as she went off into another room to answer it.

" Robbie, when I agreed to help you with this project, I wasn't aware that you were planning to make a bigamist of me," Innocent remarked as she and Lewis walked over to one of the display cases.

" Well, I…I guess I just thought it was just easier if she assumed you were my fiancée. You're too old to be me daughter, and your accent's too posh for you to pass as me sister. What do you think of this one?" he asked, pointing to one of the rings in the case.

" Too big," Innocent responded after a moment.

" I thought women liked big engagement rings."

" _Some _women do, but they're mainly the insecure type that believe that the size and expense of the ring correlate somehow to the depth of the man's love. Laura _knows_ that you love her; she doesn't need twenty-two carats of proof."

" It's still a pretty ring though—don't you think? And just because _you _prefer a smaller diamond that doesn't necessarily mean that Laura would."

Innocent folded her arms across her chest." Do you want my _honest_ opinion, Robbie?"

" Of course, ma—er... Jean."

" That is the gaudiest thing that I've seen in a very long time. Laura would absolutely loathe it—as would any woman with half-a-brain in her head. And anyway, all of this is beside the point as I highly doubt that you can afford that ring," Innocent responded, pointing at the price.

Lewis shuddered. " You'd be right about that."

Pearl re-entered the room. " Sorry about that. Now you said you were looking for engagement rings—right? What did you have in mind?"

" Well…er…er…nothing cheap but at the same time nothing that will drain the ol' bank account. Nothing too fancy but nothing too plain either. A stone that isn't super large or super small either—in the middle, you know…I…er…does that sound about right Jean?" Lewis glanced at Innocent as though waiting for her to indicate approval or disapproval.

She squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. " That sounds perfect, Robbie."

" Well, we have plenty of rings that match that description," the jeweler said. "Now if you'll put your left hand up here, ma'am; we can start trying things on—seeing what works and what doesn't."

" Is that really necessary?" Innocent asked. " I mean…can't I tell just by looking at whether or not I want a certain ring?" There were already two rings on the third finger of her left hand, and much as she wanted to help Robbie, she had no intention of removing either of those rings. Not to mention the fact that Pearl would ask awkward questions when she saw that the "bride-to-be" was already the bride of another man.

" I'm afraid not, " Pearl said, and without asking permission to do so, she grabbed Innocent's left wrist and placed her hand on the jewelry counter. The jeweler started slightly when she noticed the rings on Jean's finger.

" Her first husband died," Lewis said by way of explanation.

The jeweler's expression instantly turned from one of disgust to one of sympathy. " That's awful. Do you mind if I ask how it happened?"

" He…er…he was… ill."

" With what?"

Lewis thought for a moment and then ended up choosing the first sickness that came to mind. " Chicken pox."

" How tragic!" Pearl exclaimed. She turned to the chief superintendent. "You don't hear of many grown men succumbing to that illness. That must have come as a horrible shock to you."

" Oh, believe me, it _did_," Innocent replied as she accidentally on purpose trod on Lewis's foot with her high heel. " But Robbie was very comforting. He's a widower himself."

" Well, it's wonderful that you found each other."

" Yes, I suppose it is. Now if you don't mind, I think I'd rather try rings on my right hand."

" That's perfectly fine."

The jeweler quickly unlocked one of the jewelry cases and took out several rings. Innocent moved her right hand up to the counter and then glanced at Robbie. "Which one do you think I should try on first?"

" I dunno. You know better than I what women like, ma-" He caught himself, remembering that Innocent had specifically suggested that he didn't call her " ma'am" and that she was supposed to be his girlfriend. Then, he continued, choosing the first word " ma" word that came to mind—which turned out to be a very bad idea. "'Mango.'"

"_Mango_? Is that supposed to be an endearment? Call me that again, and you'll regret it." Innocent whispered in Lewis's ear.

" I love you too, Mango, but this isn't exactly the proper time and place" Robbie said aloud, his face now sporting a mischievous smile.

Innocent rolled her eyes. Lewis had never _intentionally_ embarrassed her like this in public before. She supposed it must have been the result of Hathaway's bad influence. Not for the first time, Innocent regretted ever placing the two of them together.

" You have a pet name for your fiancée? That's adorable—not too many men do nowadays."

'_I wonder why.' _ Jean thought. In the over twenty years that Innocent and her husband had been married, they'd never developed silly pet names for each other. In fact, they frequently made of fun of friends who had developed embarrassing nicknames for their own significant others.

Innocent sighed, selected a ring, and slid it on. She turned to Lewis. " What do you think?"

" It's very nice."

Innocent raised a skeptical eyebrow." Very nice?

" Lovely actually."

She sighed." You don't like it—do you?"

" Not really," Lewis admitted.

" Why didn't you just tell me that in the first place?"

" Well, I figured that it's more important that La—I mean that _you _like the ring."

Innocent rolled her eyes. She hoped Robbie realized that she had no intention of picking out the ring _for_ him.

" Actually, it's important that _both_ of you like it," Pearl chimed in. " Remember this _is _the ring that you're going to be seeing twinkling across the breakfast table every day."

" Exactly, Robbie. We can't get one that you hate."

" You're a fine one to talk," Lewis whispered to Innocent. " I seem to remember _someone _telling me that she picked out her own engagement ring."

" Yes, but you at least seem to have a spot more taste than Mr. Innocent. Just between us, I didn't really like that ring either."

" So you were testing me?"

Innocent nodded." And you passed."

" Aww," Pearl sighed. " The two of you are so _cute_ together, whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears."

' _Is __**that**__ what she thinks we're doing?_' Lewis thought to himself. A glint of light suddenly caught his attention. His eyes locked on one of the rings that the jeweler had placed on the counter.

As rings went, it was fairly simple. The white gold band was twisted in a graceful design around a single mid-sized diamond. The ring was not nearly as ornate as most of the others, but there was still something subtly elegant about it.

_Subtly elegant_. The words could just have easily applied to Hobson. She wasn't as obviously beautiful as some of the women he'd dated. What was more, he hadn't fallen in love with her at first sight, the way he had with Val. His feelings had sort of crept up on him unexpectedly. He'd seen her inner beauty first, and hadn't really noticed her physical attractiveness until years later. He still wondered how on earth he had missed it for so long.

" Jean," he said after a long moment had passed, " what do you think of this ring?"

Innocent followed his gaze and smiled. " It's beautiful, Robbie." She carefully slid the ring on her finger and held her hand up so that it caught the light. The chief superintendent's hand was a little larger and a little darker in complexion than Hobson's, but Robbie could still tell that the ring would suit Laura's hand to perfection. Lewis caught Innocent's eye and knew that they were thinking the exact same thing.

Lewis had been ready to buy the ring right then and there. However, Pearl cautioned her customers against making a hasty decision. Therefore, she persuaded Innocent to try on a few more rings as a formality, but Lewis's opinion didn't change. He gave the jeweler Laura's ring size and was informed that his order would be ready in a few weeks.

" Why don't the two of us grab a bite to eat before we return to the station? My treat," Innocent said after she'd slid back into the driver's seat of her car and had fastened her seatbelt.

" Thanks, ma'am, but I'm actually supposed to meet Laura for dinner later tonight." Lewis said as he entered the passenger side of the car.

Innocent's eyes widened in amusement." Aha, that should be interesting. Do you think you'll be able to keep the secret?"

" I hope so," Lewis said. He fastened his seatbelt and then spoke again after a brief pause. "Anyway, I wanted to thank you for your help, ma'am."

" You're welcome, but I think you would have been fine on your own."

" Still, I'm glad you were there. Otherwise, I might have chosen something that Laura will hate."

" That certainly isn't a problem now. The ring is gorgeous, and Hobson will adore it. And even if you had chosen an unattractive ring, I doubt it would have made any difference. Laura loves you, and when a person loves someone, he or she tend to overlook any and every imperfection in their partner."

" Such as being ' positively hopeless' when it comes to jewelry?" he teased, remembering what she'd said before about her own husband.

" Exactly. I can assure you that Mr. Innocent has plenty of wonderful traits that more than make up for his poor taste in jewelry."

" I figured as much. After all, he did bag _you_, 'Mango.'" Lewis said, winking at his companion. "Made out like a bloody bandit, you might say."

Innocent smiled and blushed a bit before starting the car.

When Mr. Innocent finally arrived home well after midnight, he was shocked to find his wife sitting on the sofa, waiting for him.

" Jean, it's late. Why are you still up?"

She didn't respond, but merely walked over to her husband, looped her arms around his shoulders, and gave him a long, passionate kiss on the lips.

" Not that I'm complaining," Mr. Innocent responded when they'd finally broken apart, "but what exactly was that for?"

' _That_' the chief superintendent thought to herself ' _was for your dying unceremoniously of a common childhood illness._' Aloud, she said. " Does there have to be a reason? I love you, and I missed you today—that's all."

He stared at her in obvious confusion." I missed you too, but aren't you tired?"

" A little, but I wanted to make sure you got home alright. Oh, and er…before I forget, I had a quick question. You've …you've already had the chicken pox—right?"

" Yeah, I had it when I was a boy. Came through with flying colours. Why do you ask?"

" Er…well…the doctor wanted to know." She kissed him again and then grabbed his hand. "Come on, let's go to bed."

When Innocent arrived at work a few days later, she found a bouquet of yellow roses in a vase on her desk. She found the accompanying card and glanced down at it.

_Dear Jean,_

_ Thank you for your patience with me the other day. You helped me find a beautiful ring that I hope Laura will be proud to wear. _

_I am truly sorry for "killing" your husband and for making a tropical fruit of you. I hope you will forgive me; I'll try not to embarrass you like that in the future, though knowing me, I'll probably do it without trying._

_Thank you agai,._

_ Robbie._

_ P.S. The florist said that the yellow rose is a traditional symbol of friendship. I hope that you consider me a friend, as I certainly consider you one._

_ P.P.S. I left another little present for you in the break room refrigerator. You probably won't like this one as much as the flowers, but I couldn't resist getting it anyway._

She smiled down at the card, flattered that Lewis considered her a friend and grateful for the beautiful flowers. She was however a little concerned about what the other "little present" might be so she went off to the break room in search of it. She quickly found Robbie's gift, and was just about to exit the room with it when Sergeant Hathaway entered. He stared first at Innocent, then at the crate in her hands, and finally back at her again.

" Ma'am, why are you holding a box of mangoes?"

**The End**


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